From static to dynamic cost structures: The case of the railroad industry

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 166-177
Author(s):  
John Rozycki ◽  
Inchul Suh ◽  
Thomas Root
Keyword(s):  
Railroad Industry ◽  
Cost Structures

THE END OF BETTERMENT ACCOUNTING: A STUDY OF THE ECONOMIC, PROFESSIONAL, AND REGULATORY FACTORS THAT FOSTERED STANDARDS CONVERGENCE IN THE U.S. RAILROAD INDUSTRY, 1955–1983

2007 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan R. Heier ◽  
A. Lee Gurley
Keyword(s):  
21St Century ◽  
Accounting Standards ◽  
Interstate Commerce Commission ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Railroad Industry ◽  
Tax Legislation ◽  
Industry Standards ◽  
Securities Industry ◽  
Arthur Andersen ◽  
The U.S

On January 26, 1983, the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) announced that it would require all railroads under its regulatory jurisdiction to change from Retirement-Replacement-Betterment (RRB) accounting, to a more theoretically sound depreciation accounting for matching revenues and expenses. The change was needed because RRB did not allow for the recapture of track investment, leaving the railroads with limited capital to replace aging track lines. Over the previous three decades, it had become painfully obvious to everyone that the industry's economic woes were the result of archaic accounting procedures that lacked harmony with the rest of American accounting standards, but the ICC was reluctant to change until new tax legislation in the early 1980s forced the issue. The decision was a culmination of a debate that started in the mid-1950s when Arthur Andersen, with the help of the securities industry, began an effort to harmonize railroad and industry standards using arguments that mirror those supporting the international accounting harmonization efforts of the early 21st century.

Industrial disability in the Japanese railways business: the activity of Testudō Kōsaikai, 1931–1955

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Toshitaka Nagahiro
Keyword(s):  
Job Training ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Lower Degree ◽  
Historical Study ◽  
Postwar Period ◽  
Disabled People ◽  
Railroad Industry ◽  
Lower Member ◽  
Degree Of Disability ◽  
Industrialization Process

Abstract The industrialization process generated many disabilities. However, the historical study of industrial disability has not progressed. This study examines disability welfare in the Japanese railroad industry. In particular, Testudō Kōsaikai, an organization of the Japanese National Railways (JNR) established in 1931, was uniquely devoted to welfare activities by linking a profit-making business and the provision of welfare. To cover welfare costs, such as providing workshops for disabled people, Kōsaikai conducted profit-making businesses, such as sales at station stalls. However, the welfare of disabled people in the JNR, including the activities of Kōsaikai, has not been previously examined. This study clarified the structure of disability welfare in the Japanese railroad industry until the early postwar period. People with a lower degree of disability, such as one upper or lower member amputation, were employed by the JNR, while some of these people were employed by Kōsaikai as sellers or officers, or accepted job training in Kōsaikai workshops. On the contrary, although few people with higher degrees of disability were employed by the JNR and Kōsaikai, the latter employed their family members to compensate them for their living costs.

Wage Criteria in the Railroad Industry

ILR Review ◽  
1952 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 119
Author(s):  
Jacob J. Kaufman
Keyword(s):  
Railroad Industry

Thermal Modeling of a Railroad Tapered-Roller Bearing Using Finite Element Analysis

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Constantine M. Tarawneh ◽  
Arturo A. Fuentes ◽  
Javier A. Kypuros ◽  
Lariza A. Navarro ◽  
Andrei G. Vaipan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element Analysis ◽  
Finite Element ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Elevated Temperatures ◽  
Roller Bearing ◽  
Fe Model ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Tapered Roller Bearing ◽  
Outer Race ◽  
Railroad Industry

In the railroad industry, distressed bearings in service are primarily identified using wayside hot-box detectors (HBDs). Current technology has expanded the role of these detectors to monitor bearings that appear to “warm trend” relative to the average temperatures of the remainder of bearings on the train. Several bearings set-out for trending and classified as nonverified, meaning no discernible damage, revealed that a common feature was discoloration of rollers within a cone (inner race) assembly. Subsequent laboratory experiments were performed to determine a minimum temperature and environment necessary to reproduce these discolorations and concluded that the discoloration is most likely due to roller temperatures greater than 232 °C (450 °F) for periods of at least 4 h. The latter finding sparked several discussions and speculations in the railroad industry as to whether it is possible to have rollers reaching such elevated temperatures without heating the bearing cup (outer race) to a temperature significant enough to trigger the HBDs. With this motivation, and based on previous experimental and analytical work, a thermal finite element analysis (FEA) of a railroad bearing pressed onto an axle was conducted using ALGOR 20.3™. The finite element (FE) model was used to simulate different heating scenarios with the purpose of obtaining the temperatures of internal components of the bearing assembly, as well as the heat generation rates and the bearing cup surface temperature. The results showed that, even though some rollers can reach unsafe operating temperatures, the bearing cup surface temperature does not exhibit levels that would trigger HBD alarms.

Ultrasonic Tomography for Rail Flaw Imaging

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Phillips ◽  
Francesco Lanza di Scalea ◽  
Claudio Nucera ◽  
Piervincenzo Rizzo ◽  
Leith Al-Nazer
Keyword(s):  
Human Error ◽  
Ultrasonic Inspection ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Inspection Time ◽  
Practical Implementation ◽  
Ultrasonic Tomography ◽  
Railroad Industry ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Portable System ◽  
High Resolution Images

There is a need in the railroad industry to have quantitative information on internal rail flaws, including flaw size and orientation. Such information can lead to knowledge-based decision making on any remedial action, and ultimately increase the safety of train operations by preventing derailments. Current ultrasonic inspection methods leave such sizing determinations to the inspector, and there can be significant variability from one inspector to another depending on experience and other factors. However, this quantitative information can be obtained accurately by 3-D imaging of the rail flaws. It is the goal of this project to develop a portable system that will improve defect classification in rails and ultimately improve public safety. This paper will present a method for 3-D imaging of internal rail flaws based on Ultrasonic Tomography. The proposed technique combines elements of ultrasonic testing with those of radar and sonar imaging to obtain high-resolution images of the flaws using a stationary array of ultrasonic transducers. The array is operated in a “full matrix capture” scheme that minimizes the number of ultrasonic transmitters, hence simplifying the practical implementation and reducing the inspection time. In this method, a full 3D image of the rail volume identifies the location, size and orientation of the defect. This will help to eliminate human error involved with a typical manual inspection using a single transducer probe inspection. The results of advanced numerical simulations, carried out on a rail profile, will be presented. The simulations show the effectiveness of the technique to image a 5% Head Area Transverse Defect in the railhead. Current efforts are aimed at developing an experimental prototype based on this technology, whose design status is also discussed in this paper.

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